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[{"type":"text","text":"Could watch this all day. Just put it on auto loop..."}]

Smile 26 8 15

<title>Daily Smile: Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026</title>

Could watch this all day. Just put it on auto loop...

Daily Smile: Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026

 Could watch this all day. Just put it on auto loop...

Yamachika Tom IMG 1913 Large

Tom Yamachika

Viewpoints

Government & Politics

Hawaiʻi has no shortage of celebrity property owners. What I mean is that there are famous people who own property — sometimes a lot of property — here in Hawaiʻi even though said famous people might not live here. You might have heard of Larry Ellison or Mark Zuckerberg or Oprah Winfrey.  Maybe even Roseanne Barr.

And then there’s Ken Paxton. Yes, the Attorney General of Texas, candidate for Senator. He is the guy who, on behalf of Texas, sued Pennsylvania, Georgia, Michigan and Wisconsin seeking to overturn their results in the 2020 presidential election. (The U.S. Supreme Court tossed out his suit.) He also made news when four whistleblowers whom he fired won a $6.6 million judgment against his office for wrongful termination. (No skin off his back, though; Texas taxpayers wound up paying the tab.)

According to reporting from a nonprofit, university affiliated news organization in Texas, Mr. Paxton owns some property on Maui through a “blind trust,” meaning that he owns it, but someone else manages it for him, to cut down on possible conflicts of interest in his current position.

[{"type":"text","text":"And the trust hasn’t paid his taxes."}]

According to Maui County property tax records, the real property tax for the first half of 2026 is due and unpaid. Some penalties and interest have been added.

The blind trust bought the property in October 2021. He’s had the property for a while and he had been paying property taxes on it until this year. 

But, as readers of this column know all too well, the tax burden doesn’t stop there.

According to the Texas Tribune, the property was probably used a rental. Rental income is subject to our general excise tax, and perhaps our transient accommodations Tax if the rental was for fewer than 180 days.

Yet, in the Hawaiʻi database of tax licensees which lists people and entities registered for GET, TAT, withholding, and other tax types, there is no Esther Blind Trust, or any name resembling it, to be found.

If there are GET and TAT taxes due and unpaid, the consequences may be severe. Folks who are required to file returns and pay taxes, but do neither, are routinely written up for 70% penalties. A 25% penalty is imposed for failure to file, another 25% for negligence, and another 20% for substantially underpaying taxes. In the federal system, you won’t see penalties this big because penalty stacking is limited. Not so under Hawaiʻi’s tax laws.

To make things worse (for him), there is no statute of limitations to block the assessment. The statute of limitations starts running only if an annual return is filed.  With no returns filed, all past years are open for assessment.

And this trust won’t be able to shrug off the tax, penalties, and interest by simply saying that it doesn’t have money to pay them.  The Texas reporting says that the trust currently owns at least 15 properties with a total worth of about $9 million.

So, to our good friends at the Department of Taxation, we may have here some “low-hanging fruit.”

Celebrities should be following the law. They should be an example for the rest of us.

[{"type":"text","text":"Sock it to ‘em, baby!"}]

Ken Paxton 54234158172

<title>Community Voices: Dear Mr. Paxton, pay your taxes</title>

Paxton owns some property on Maui, according to reporting from a university affiliated news organization in Texas and Maui County property records. And the trust that manages his island home hasn’t paid his taxes.

Community Voices: Dear Mr. Paxton, pay your taxes

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta Headshot

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta

Food & Dining

, which closed its Kapahulu eatery in April, just opened its new location in Waikīkī.

The restaurant is located at 280 Beach Walk, in the former space of Westman Cafe and Bills Waikīkī. Follow the restaurant

signs, and head upstairs for restaurant seating.

The new location features the same menu with all of Side Street Inn’s signature dishes, which are designed to share, family-style, according to general manager Korie Sasano.

“Our fried rice, pork chops, garlic chicken and kalbi are the most popular,” Sasano says. “I think some things that are more ‘hidden’ — that maybe people don’t know about — is the yakisoba and roast pork poke; they’re really good. A lot of people don’t really know about those two (dishes), but when you try it, you’re going to be hooked.”

The roast pork poke ($28) — comprising crispy roast pork tossed in the eatery’s citrus shoyu vinaigrette sauce with sweet onions, green onions and Chinese parsley — and farmer’s salad (half $19, full $28) are highly-recommended appetizers. The colorful salad features spring mixed greens with grape tomatoes, avocado, Maui onions, capers and bay shrimp with red wine vinaigrette dressing and Okinawan potato curls.

“The farmer’s salad is one of our most popular salads,” Sasano says. “People really love the dressing.”

Customers can choose from sizzling boneless kalbi (market price) or bone-in kalbi (market price). Both dishes feature charbroiled Korean-style short ribs, served with kimchi. Meanwhile, Side Street’s signature garlic chicken ($31) features a marinated fried chicken dipped in a sweet shoyu garlic sauce.

The “Works” fried rice ($41.50) can easily feed a group, as it comprises Side Street Inn’s signature fried rice (bacon, Portuguese sausage, char siu, green onions, peas and carrots) with kimchi and lup cheong. It’s often ordered alongside Side Street’s famous pan-fried pork chops ($36).

For groups who want a little of everything, Sasano says Chef Colin’s Classics menu ($195 for four to five guests, $370 for eight to 10) is still available. It includes edamame with Alae salt, farmer’s salad, Side Street’s signature fried rice, garlic chicken, pan-fried pork chops and sizzling boneless kalbi.

“The menu is pretty much the same; I think they’re thinking of doing specials,” she says. “There’s talk of doing happy hour like we did at Kapahulu, too; people loved the small plates. They got to try more (options).”

Side Street’s signature peanut butter crunch ($19) — served warm with a crispy peanut butter layer, chocolate drizzle and Roselani’s vanilla ice cream — is still the eatery’s most popular dessert, Sasano notes. Other options include Mom’s sweet bread pudding ($17); brownie, brownie, brownie ($17); liliko

i crème brulee ($15) and chocolate haupia ($15).

“Everything is homemade; I think that’s what makes it (our desserts) extra good,” she says. “I heard a lot of our staff really love the bread pudding.”

The restaurant is currently waiting on its liquor license and is BYOB in the meantime. Customers are welcome to bring in beer and wine; there’s a $10 corkage fee per person, according to Sasano.

“The corkage fee is for anyone who participates in drinking,” she confirms. “We also offer a 10% 

 discount (with a valid ID) for dine-in, along with two-hour validated parking at the Bank of Hawai

i building (across the street). I know parking is always hard in Waikīkī.”

Customers can call to make reservations; Sasano says the business was able to keep the same phone number from when it was at Kapahulu.

“We always just remind people, if they don’t know we moved, that we’re at a new location,” she says. “We’re just nervous and excited to see how it’s going to be for us — how different the foot traffic is going to be, now that we’re in Waikīkī. We’re still excited to have our regulars come back because we miss them. We hope they don’t mind the ‘trek to Waikīkī,’ as people sometimes say.”

Open 4 to 10 p.m. Mondays to Thursdays, 4 to 11 p.m. Fridays, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays

Side Street Inn staff 092626

<title>Side Street Inn’s new location is open</title>

The eatery, known for its local comfort food and generous portions, closed its Kapahulu location in April. Side Street Inn’s new location is on Beach Walk in Waikīkī; customers can take advantage of a kamaʻāina discount and validated parking.

Side Street Inn’s new location is open

Christian Shimabuku Headshot

Christian Shimabuku

Sports

In a game in which it never found a rhythm offensively and made multiple costly mental errors, the University of Hawai‘i football team suffered a 27-10 defeat at the University of Wyoming on Saturday. 

The Rainbow Warriors fell to 1-3 in a year that began with 

After both teams exchanged field goals to begin the first quarter, Wyoming began to systematically pull away from UH. 

Another field goal, combined with a Markell Holman 1-yard rushing score, gave Wyoming a 13-3 lead at halftime. 

The 'Bows got the ball to start the third quarter and shaved nearly 10 minutes off the clock but had nothing to show for it after turning the ball over on downs at the Wyoming 1. Hawai‘i appeared to force a Wyoming three-and-out and punt, but a costly mental error kept the drive going when two players wearing No. 8 in Tama Uiliata and Matteus Ioane took the field for the Rainbow Warriors. Two players wearing the same number in the same play is forbidden in college football, and Wyoming was gifted a first down.

Wyoming capped off the 99-yard drive with Holman's second touchdown of the day, an 18-yard touchdown run with 14:52 remaining that stretched the home lead to 20-3. 

Hawai‘i cut Wyoming's lead to 20-10 on a 20-yard touchdown pass to Devon Tauaefa with 12:11 left. After forcing a Wyoming punt, the 'Bows got into field goal range, but Sean Olvera-Harle's 54-yard attempt was shanked far to the fight. 

The Cowboys put the nail in the coffin with a Samuel Harris 18-yard touchdown with 1:46 remaining for the game's final score. 

Though it was a moot effort, Hawai‘i called timeout with four seconds remaining at the Wyoming 14, setting up for one last score. UH quarterback Micah Alejado was sacked for the third time on Saturday before he was able to attempt a pass. 

Alejado completed 28 of his passes for 44 yards for 226 yards, averaging just 5.1 yards per completion. 

Wyoming's balanced offensive effort in which it passed for 204 yards and ran for an additional 183 kept the 'Bows off balance. 

 was one of the lone bright spots for the team with a game-high 10 tackles, including a sack and a forced fumble. 

Hawai‘i will return home to face San Jose State, a program it has lost five straight matchups to. Kickoff between the Rainbow Warriors and Spartans at the Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex is set for 6 p.m. on Oct. 3. 

Micah Alejado 092626

<title>Hawai‘i football out of sync in lifeless loss to rival Wyoming</title>

The Rainbow Warriors lost the Paniolo Trophy with a 27-10 defeat to the Cowboys on Saturday.

Hawai‘i football out of sync in lifeless loss to rival Wyoming

Katie Helland Headshot

Katie Helland

Arts & Entertainment

Aloha Spirit

The Pacific Island Film Festival, which recently wrapped up in New York City, provided a space to showcase films, including several filmed in or about Hawaiʻi. The festival, which ran from Sept. 17-20, featured 28 films, representing 10 island nations from across the Pacific.

One of those films was the documentary “Lahaina: Voices of Change,” directed by Ty Sanga, and produced by Angie Laprete, who was also the producer of 

 and more. “Lahaina: Voices of Change” explores how one of the deadliest wildfires in U.S. history displaced thousands of people and claimed lives.

“It was actually really important to be able to screen our documentary ‘Lahaina: Voices of Change’ in New York City for Pacific Island Film Festival because that's the reason why we made this documentary,” Sanga told Aloha State Daily. “It's three years later, and we're still dealing with the ramifications of the fire, and a lot of families are still struggling to get by. Hawaiʻi is a small island in the Pacific and to be able to get our stories out there — to put a face to these stories in New York City — that’s our goal is to get more advocates to come along and help us on this journey because when we're talking about global warming ... it needs to be everyone involved, not just us here in Hawaiʻi”.

One of the firefighters who responded to the Maui wildfires was at the screening, he said.

“He shared his first-person experience with the audience, and I think that just made it real,” Sanga said. “They’ve seen the footage on social media or in the news. And now that's three years ago. We're in a super El Niño

 right now and climate change is real and it's happening. Lahaina was one of the first voices, or places, to experience that so we had a really captivated audience that made it special. Hopefully, we just need more advocates that are fighting for our ʻāina, our land, not just Hawaiʻi [but] everywhere they’re at, in their own communities, because that's how we truly make a difference.”

The festival gives films a chance to reach families living in the diaspora and find new audiences, he said.

Also featured in the festival was the short 

 “What We Carry,” which stars Lindsay Watson, who is also its director and writer. Laprete is the producer. The short, which Watson hopes to eventually develop into a full-length feature, explores the experience of a woman who had multiple miscarriages and is ready to abandon her dream of motherhood when she discovers a secret.

“I wanted to be able to tell a universal story with Polynesian faces,” Watson told ASD. “I wanted the world to be able to see us as more than just their vacation, [or] as paradise [or] people who work in hotels and work at the airport. And even in the casting world too, as more than the hula dancer, the bartender, the dancer. To see a muscular, tatted up Polynesian man, who's a flawed husband, and a Hawaiian wife, who is going through something that many women in this world have gone through.”

The short includes a mostly Polynesian cast and had a budget of $25,000, which was covered by a 

grant from the Julia S. Gouw Short Film Challenge

. Watson, who currently lives in Los Angeles, was born and raised on Maui.

After the screening of “What We Carry” at PIFF, which was the film's New York debut, a woman who normally doesn’t like movies told Watson she cried through it and loved the film.

“She, again, also had no connection to the culture of Hawaiʻi and this story still resonated with her,” the director said. “That to me is the power of film is connecting cultures and connecting places that have no other way of being connected.”

“What We Carry” was filmed almost entirely in Kāneʻohe

, mostly in the house of Watson’s grandmother, who passed away about a month before filming started.

The festival was a chance to take a story filmed in Hawaiʻi to new audiences, Watson said.

“The number one thing is being able to take our film across the Pacific — across the country,” she said. “That's something most people don't even have the opportunity to do.”

Recently, more Pacific Islanders are sharing their own stories.

“And I think it's all because of access,” Watson said. “For so long, there wasn't access and education and connections for a lot of Pacific Islanders to tell their own stories. There were only a few of us in this industry, and there's power in numbers.”

The existence of the Hawaiʻi International Film Festival, as well as programs such as the International Cultural Arts Network, the Pasifika Entertainment Advancement Komiti and the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment —  which were designed to increase Pacific Islander representation in Hollywood —  brought the AAPI community together and helped them get a seat at the table, she said.

PIFF partnered with AMC+ Streaming so five films from the festival can stream to even larger audiences. Three of those films have ties to Hawaiʻi, including “Hawaiian Soul” directed by ʻĀina Paikai; “Aikāne, directed by Daniel Sousa, Dean Hamer, and Joe Wilson; and “The Arrangements” directed by Sonny Ganaden.

“Dasher,” from Director Alexander Bocchieri

 and Writer Bryson Chun, who worked on the television series “Doogie Kamealoha, M.D.,” as well as “Remathau: People of the Ocean,” a documentary that features Nainoa Thompson, among other titles.

Lindsay Watson

<title>Filmmakers reflect on bringing Hawaiʻi to New York</title>

The recent Pacific Island Film Festival, held in New York City, included stories filmed in Hawaiʻi, which reached audiences almost 5,000 miles from where the cameras rolled.

Filmmakers reflect on bringing Hawaiʻi to New York

Square Mike Brestovansky Headshot RGZ3736 Large

Michael Brestovansky

Crime & Courts

Some Hawai‘i residents could get a piece of a $694 million settlement between Hawai‘i and an automobile finance company.

Hawai‘i and 40 other states sued the Credit Acceptance Corp. in 2025 over allegations that the company knowingly targeted certain low-income car buyers for loans they couldn’t afford, and then used aggressive debt-collection tactics to force them to pay up.

According to the Hawai‘i Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, CAC used a proprietary scoring system to predict the percentage of each loan that CAC could collect on. But CAC still offered loans with low scores — that is, loans unlikely for the borrower to be able to pay back — even to people the company predicted couldn’t pay back the loan’s principal, resulting in many borrowers defaulting and losing their cars to repossession.

Furthermore, the suit also alleged that CAC failed to prevent auto dealers in the company’s network from “packing” additional fees into their CAC loans. This practice led dealers to include additional fees for services such as vehicle service contracts, which customers may have been led to believe were required to have in order to get financing, or may have been unaware they purchased at all.

risk loans a lender knows a borrower cannot reasonably afford predictably leads to bad outcomes for borrowers and lenders,” Mana Moriarty, executive director of the Office of Consumer Protection, said on Wednesday, Sept 23. “This settlement provides cash to affected borrowers, removes the threat of collection lawsuits and removes negative items from borrowers’ credit reports.”

The $694 million settlement is split between $15 million to be paid to the attorneys general involved in the suit, $60 million for cash restitution for consumers who took risky loans through CAC, and $634 million for customer debt forgiveness.

The Hawai‘i Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs’ Office of Consumer Protection announced this week that certain Hawai‘i recipients of CAC loans will receive up to $830,000 in total debt relief.

Eligible recipients may have already had their loans forgiven; the settlement requires CAC to reach out to customers who are entitled to debt relief. Nonetheless, people with questions about their eligibility are encouraged to reach out to CAC at 800-634-1506.

Meanwhile, other Hawai‘i consumers will receive about $115,000 in total in direct payments.

Furthermore, CAC must provide “off-ramps” for borrowers who took out risky lans in Dec. 2025 or later. Those borrowers will have 95% of their debt forgiven, and CAC will not initiate any further collection lawsuits or other collection actions on those loans. Those off-ramps will be available for five years beginning on Nov. 2 of this year.

DCCA General Header 16x9

<title>,000 in debt forgiveness available for Hawai‘i residents after settlement</title>

Multi-state settlement with Credit Acceptance Corp. offers Hawai‘i borrowers a piece of a $694 million pie

$830,000 in debt forgiveness available for Hawai‘i residents after settlement

WEB square crop Hayley Lehman Headshot RGZ1636

Haley Lehman

Honolulu-based Jessica Lee’s 420 hours of volunteer service, success on the varsity I golf team, experience as a violinist and a trip to Boston earned her the Congressional Award Gold Medal this year.

 is awarded to young people who log a minimum of 400 hours of voluntary public service, 200 hours of personal development, 200 hours of physical fitness and a five-day, four-night expedition or exploration during a two-year period. 

Lee became one of 877 gold medalists from across the U.S. this year. She told Aloha State Daily that she aspires to serve the community and treat everyone with kindness.

Congressman Ed Case presented the award, a gold medal from U.S. Congress and a certificate of special recognition to Lee in August. He said that the award encourages high expectations, perseverance, resilience and achievement. Lee is the seventh person to receive the gold medal in his district in the last quarter-century, Case said.

Lee told ASD she was excited when she learned that she would receive the award, and that she found joy in the application process, which reinforced time management skills, discipline and resilience, she said, adding that her volunteer service led her to make new connections and get more involved in her community.

Lee’s volunteer service in health care stems from her grandfather’s experience in Korea after he was diagnosed with lung cancer. She said that her grandfather received misinformation about his diagnosis and treatment, and this experience led her to volunteer in the medical field in Hawaiʻi. 

Lee spent time with elderly patients in the adult care centers at St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawaiʻi, interacted with patients and doctors and shadowed medical professionals.

When she started volunteering at St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawaiʻi, she saw families facing language barriers that prevented them from fully understanding the information they received from medical professionals. Lee said that when language barriers are removed, patients can ask the right questions and have a greater sense of agency over their medical decisions.

“I noticed that there were different underserved pockets in our community and I wanted to help address those pockets,” she said.

She started a nonprofit called Cancer Health Awareness & Mindfulness Program (

) to empower patients to empower patients through health literacy. Through CHAMP, Lee organizes workshops on cancer risks, prevention strategies and local resources. This summer, CHAMP partnered with 

the University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center Skin Van 

to host a skin cancer awareness event at Ala Moana Beach Park.

Lee also helps lead Caring of the Elderly at Punahou School, which serves kūpuna in Mānoa twice a month.

Golf has been a big part of Lee’s life since she was 4 years old when her family moved from New York to Hawaiʻi, she noted.

“Sports are very addicting in a way because you just have this adrenaline, love, passion, for the sport,” she said, adding that playing golf has made her more resilient and taught her about failure.

“Even if you fail or even if you have this one terrible shot, you can still move on and have the bravery and courage to move forward," she continued. "It’s taught me to step out of your comfort zone to do something brave and try.”

The Punahou Varsity I girls golf team won the state championship three years in a row and Lee placed second in the state in 2024.

Lee started playing violin in fourth grade and got involved with the school orchestra in fifth grade.

“I really enjoy playing the violin and experiencing the different repertoire and music that they select,” she said.

During Lee’s trip to Boston in the spring of 2025, she toured college campuses, visited museums, explored the city and tried new foods.

She said that navigating the transportation system was the most challenging part of the trip. It was her first riding the subway, known as the “T," and admittedly got lost at times.

Lee has been advocating for Korean heritage and language in school curriculums since she was in the seventh grade. It started when she voiced to include Korean as part of the Punahou School curriculum during the Damon Speech. She created a petition that 300 students signed and advocated to neighborhood boards and the Hawaiʻi Legislature to include Korean heritage initiatives in schools.

“Families often lose their heritage language in three generations,” she said. “If you can be taught during schools, you can understand your culture more and connect with your grandparents.”

As a senior, Lee is applying to colleges and hopes to pursue the intersection of public health and culture to become a physician. She said she hopes to empower people to have more agency over their medical decisions through health literacy.

“The best way to empower patients is with the information and knowledge and questions to ask.”

Jessica Lee

<title>Punahou School senior earns Congressional Award Gold Medal</title>

Jessica Lee, a senior at Punahou, was awarded the highest honor presented to young people by the U.S. Congress in August for her achievement in voluntary public service, personal development, physical fitness and leadership.

Daily Smile: Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026

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Daily Smile: Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026

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